If you call a service company and you get a recording do you leave a message?

it depends, mostly on the quality of the company and whether they have good competition.

It’s not unusual to have to leave a message the first time, especially the smaller 2–3 person operations – I figure they may well be hard it work.

However, if they don’t respond quickly – within hours, definitely by that evening – they’re off my list.

Where I live, I’m aware of 4–5 good quality plumbers and HVAC people. So if #1 doesn’t answer, then I go with #2, and so on. On the other hand, there was I guy who came in and did a great job on my roof a couple years ago—I would definitely wait for his services if I needed them.

So it really depends on how badly they are needed and how good they are.

Normally I don’t but at our lake cabin, it is in a rural area and I have needed gutter and concrete work estimates and a plumber to come out and in all 3 cases I got answering machines and have had to leave messages.

Sure I leave a message. Many service people are one man operations so if they’re out on a call, they leave their answering machine on. If they don’t call back in a timely fashion, I move on.

Almost always. These are small businesses, here, and just about everybody gets back to me quickly. Most of the numbers are cells, so they get messages very quickly.

The message content matters, too. I called a surveyor recently and they said they respond to voice mail “on a weekly basis.” Yeah thanks no.

On the flip side is a plumber whose message says, “If you are hearing this message I am probably under someone’s kitchen sink. Leave your number and I will call you back.”

Of course I do. I judge the company on how quickly they return my call not whether they were able to answer their phone.

Thanks everybody! Very helpful.